


Ambrosia

by SomeCereals



Category: Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Pining, Self Insert, twstpasta, writing raffle prize
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-23
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:41:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24883996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomeCereals/pseuds/SomeCereals
Summary: Vil, and the one he yearns for.The longer the wait, the sweeter the fruit--if he gets a taste at all.
Relationships: Ace Trappola/Reader, Reader/Vil Schoenheit
Comments: 2
Kudos: 137





	Ambrosia

**Author's Note:**

> A piece written as a prize for one of my writing raffle winners, @twstpasta on Tumblr.
> 
> I included some Easter Eggs in here. Try to catch them all; answers are at the end.

"Heart's Desire is a vital ingredient for love potions," Professor Crewel lectures, tapping his pointer on the blackboard. On it, an intricate diagram of a plant. "Note the heart-shaped curl of the petals and the passionate scarlet hue--that is its signature look."

His eyes prowl the classroom in search of his first victim for the day. To your dismay, you make eye contact with the professor.

“(Y/N)!” Crewel barks, making you jump in your seat. “Tell the class. What are the optimal growing conditions for Heart’s Desire?!”

Luckily, you have done the assigned reading--you know the answer.

“Mid to late spring, with plenty of sunlight, water, and copper and tellurium enriched soil. It’s recommended to whisper sweet nothings into its petals at midnight to produce the healthiest blooms.”

“Excellent.” Crewel nods in approval, his eyes searching for his next victim."Now then--who can tell me  _ when _ the optimal time to harvest Heart’s Desire is?”

“Immediately before your intended use,” recited a voice from behind your seat--it belongs to a regal young man with hair like spun gold and porcelain skin. “Harvest it too early, and it stands to lose its potency.”

“Good boy! That is correct.” The professor returns his attention to the blackboard. “Heart’s Desire is beautiful, but without its roots grounded in the natural world, its beauty--and thus its power--fades.”

He shakes his head, a solemn look on his face.

“Leave the flower to flourish as it was meant to--or pluck the flower for your own selfish desires...it is a moral dilemma that has plagued the alchemy community for many a moon.”

You try to listen to the rest of the lecture, but you feel the heat of someone’s eyes trained on the back of your head.

* * *

“Excuse me.”

You turn toward the voice. It belongs to the young man sitting behind you in class. Up close, he seems even more heartbreakingly beautiful than before.

Full lips, long lashes, and skin so smooth it practically resembles glass...His heart-shaped face is expertly painted with cosmetics that accentuate his natural features. Even his hair--the tips dyed violet, fading into a golden shimmer--is like that of a perfectly poised fairy tale princess.

No--to liken his visage to that of a mere princess is an insult.

His beauty is equal to that of a  _ queen. _

You blink.

Once, twice.

What could this gorgeous man possibly want with a commoner like you?

He grins when you catch his gaze and he extends a hand. “I have seen you around campus, but I do not believe we have been formally introduced to one another yet. I am Vil Schoenheit--a third year student, and Pomefiore’s dorm leader.”

You snap out of your daze and scrape together an introduction.

“Oh, it’s nice to meet you...erm, Vil-senpai,” you reply, scratching the back of your head. “I’m (Y/N). I’ve only been around for a semester or two, ahahaha…”

“Only a semester or two, you say?” Vil arches a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “Yet you are already placed in an advanced Poison Making class. That is rather impressive, potato.”

_ Potato? _

You shake off the remark and continue. “I’m just trying to do my best and survive.”

Vil chuckles. “I’m sure you will do just fine. However, if you should ever find yourself to be struggling with the materials, you are free to seek me out for assistance. “

“Wow, thanks. That’s really nice of you, senpai.” You offer a shy smile. “Then I’ll be counting on you!”

His eyes widen.

“Um, do I have something on my face?”

“No, no. I was...just thinking that you make such lovely expressions.”

“Oh...okay…?”

Vil purses his glossy lips. He looks as though he has something more to say, but you are interrupted by a boisterous voice.

“Oi, (Y/N)! Hurry it up, will ya? I can’t stand around and wait all day for you, y’know!”

You glance down the hallway. A boy sporting a heart and a cheeky look on his face waves. Your heart skips a beat, and a telltale blush creeps up your cheeks.

“Sorry, that’s my dumb boyfriend calling,” you sigh. “I gotta go--but I’ll see you around, Vil-senpai!”

And you are gone, like a kiss blown to the spring breeze.

* * *

You would have been a fool if you didn’t take Vil up on his offer. Advanced Poison Making is  _ not _ an easy course--but with your upperclassman’s help, it is manageable.

You get into the habit of meeting every Friday to cover lecture materials from the week--from the easiest of concepts to the most challenging details. Flashcards and diagrams dance in your head. Vocabulary and theories are no match for you two.

But...

Every so often, you catch Vil’s eyes straying--straying from the pages of his notes or the textbook and to your face.

He cradles his face in his hands and stares absentmindedly at you--nothing like the composed, regal upperclassman he had initially presented himself to be. Maybe he means nothing by it at all--but you choose to speak up.

“Uh...Vil-senpai?”

“Mmm? What is it, potato?”

“Could you...um...maybe stare at me less?” you mutter, averting your eyes. “I don’t think that Ace would like that very much. We should just focus on studying.”

“Oh.” His expression falls--but he is quick to compose himself and straighten. “Yes, you’re absolutely right. Please, do pardon my behavior. I’ve been quite distracted as of late, so I apologize if that has made you uncomfortable.”

You offer a kind, reassuring smile--and it guts him right in the heart.

“That’s okay, you didn’t mean to.”

“Of course.”

His own smile is tight.

And his chest aches.

* * *

He hovers over a massive cauldron, stirring the concoction inside.

_ A drop of desire, a pinch of passion...and just a hint of lust.  _ As he recites the recipe in his head, he drops the corresponding ingredients into the boiling depths of the cauldron.

A plume of smoke with a sickly sweet aroma wafts up--and Vil quickly steps back before he gets a good whiff of it. The smoke collects, forming a sunset-colored curtain above him before returning to the cauldron.

_ That’s a good sign, _ he notes.  _ It’s almost ready. _

Vil reaches his lab bench, where an array of plants and medicinal herbs await. He plucks a scarlet flower from its pot and tosses it into his experiment. As soon as the flower’s heart-shaped petals have dissolved into the brew, there is a sharp fizzle--and the contents of the pot turn a pleasant shade of pink.

_ Perfect. _

He fishes out an apple from his lab coat pocket and dangles it above the cauldron. The poor fruit is lumpy and misshapen, bruised and battered and unloved--but Vil is determined to make it pretty once more.

Slowly--very slowly--he lowers the fruit into the cauldron, completely submerging it.

One second passes--then two.

Vil lifts the apple up from its bath.

No longer does the fruit look ugly and unwanted--the skin has turned bright red and glossy, its flesh reformed into a symmetrical, almost heart-like shape. And the aroma it gives off--so cloying, so intoxicating…

...like the taste of one’s first love.

Vil smirks.

It is beautiful.

* * *

“...Potato. Let me ask you something.”

“Sure thing,” you glance up from your notebook. “Do you have a question about the assignment?”

“Nothing like that. I am just concerned, is all.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I fear that our study sessions may be cutting into your ‘me time’. Fridays are usually prime time for self care and date nights, are they not? Yet you choose to spend that time with me instead.” Vil pauses--meaningfully. “I wanted to know...are you happy with things as they are now?”

You don’t hesitate, even for a second.

“I am. Everyone has been so welcoming to me, and I’ve been able to meet a lot of amazing people ever since I came to Night Raven College.” You smile softly. “I’m fine with spending my Fridays like this. You’re a very important friend, after all--and I wouldn’t change that for the world.”

“I...I see.” Vil averts his gaze.

“Is everything alright?” you ask worriedly. “You don’t look too well, senpai.”

“I am fine. There is no need to worry, little potato--all is well.”

He digs his fingernails into the apple he has hidden behind his back--the apple he was going to offer them as an afternoon snack. A perfectly good fruit, now destined for the trash can.

“We should return to our studies,” he suggests.

“Yes, we should.”

* * *

Vil stares at himself in a full-length mirror.

Him--it’s still him, he tells himself.

It’s  _ him _ \--but far more miserable, a disheveled wretch.

He reaches out, tracing the curve of his jawline on the surface of the mirror.

Footsteps.

“How generous of you,  _ Roi du Poison _ . Allowing your prey to slip away from you, that is. I don’t know if I could have been quite so flippant, had I been in your shoes.”

Vil’s eyes narrow into daggers. Within the face of his mirror, he can make out a familiar figure stepping into view--not that he needs to _ see _ to know who that voice belongs to.

The man behind him strides up--and bows mockingly, with a tip of his feathered hat.

“Rook. You really do know how to run your mouth in all the wrong directions, don’t you?”

His vice-dorm leader laughs airily. “I speak only the truth.”

“The _ truth _ ? And just what kind of a man do you take me for? You expect me to force my vision of happiness onto another?”

“I take you to be the kind of man that would normally stop at nothing to get what he desires most,” Rook countered. “And I expect you to be the pinnacle of beauty--but alas, your sparkle has grown dim as of late,  _ Roi du Poison _ \--your resolution, faltering.”

Vil shakes his head. “I could never go through with it. Not when they are smiling as brilliantly as they are now.”

“Hoh. I see.” Rook’s smile deepens. “You are softer than I took you for.”

“Spare me the prattle. I’m not in the mood for any more of your  _ witty _ commentary.” Vil glares at Rook through his mirror--not bothering to speak to him face-to-face. He waves a hand. “Leave me.”

“I apologize. I will cut to the chase,  _ Roi du Poison.  _ I am here on behalf of the dormitory, you see. They are...no,  _ I _ am worried about you.” Rook’s eyes are pleading, but in the mirror, they appear dark and distorted. “Will you not return to--”

“Did I ask for your opinion?!  _ Get out of my sight _ ,” Vil snaps, his voice spiking. It sounds shrill, deranged, demanding--the command of a queen sentencing a servant to the gallows.

“... _ Oui. _ As you wish, my liege.”

Rook dips into another bow before retreating into the shadows.

And Vil--he returns to gazing at his beloved mirror. His hollow-eyed, pallid reflection stares back. Something heavy and unseen hangs off of his lean frame, like a water-drenched veil, weighing him down.

“I am happy,” he tells himself--the same line he has been reciting for the past several hours. Perhaps if he repeats it enough, the statement will become a reality. “I  _ am _ happy.”

The words ring hollow, insincere--even in his own ears.

“...If they are happy, then I, too, am happy,” he whispers, clutching onto his sagging shoulders.

_ I am happy. _

But deep down, he knows.

It is nothing more than a lie.

A pretty lie for a pretty face.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed reading this piece, please check out my Twisted Wonderland writing blog and consider sending in a request of your own (though currently I am not accepting new requests)! I usually only post my longer pieces to AO3 (1000+ words), but you can find a lot of my shorter one shots on the blog.
> 
> Link is: https://raven-at-the-writing-desk.tumblr.com/
> 
> Thank you for your time~
> 
> EASTER EGGS:  
> 1\. Apple dipped in love potion; similar to the poisoned apple in Snow White.  
> 2\. The copper and tellurium enriched soil for growing Heart's Desire is a reference to the old chemistry joke "are you made of copper and tellurium, because you are CuTe", where Cu = copper and Te =tellurium.  
> 3\. The ingredients Vil lists off for the love potion are the same as the ones listed by the Fairy Godmother in Shrek 2 when she is making her own love potion for Fiona.


End file.
